It had been a week since the incident.
A week filled with contemplation, worry, and most of all—
Change.
The entire compound had been forced to stop working.
Tools lay abandoned where they had been dropped.
Hoes.
Axes.
Shovels.
Even the infected guards stood unnaturally still, forming a wide circle around the center yard.
Snow drifted lazily through the afternoon air, settling across shoulders and rusted fencing alike.
Nobody spoke.
Not until Miriam stepped forward.
She wore no crown.
No uniform that declared authority.
She never needed one.
Authority followed her anyway.
She clasped her hands behind her back and slowly surveyed the crowd.
Workers.
Prisoners.
Converted.
Unconverted.
Adults.
Children.
Every pair of eyes eventually settled on her.
"My people," she said quietly.
Her voice never needed volume.
Silence carried it farther than shouting ever could.
"We spend every day beside one another."
